There is an amazing race going on in Alaska right now. It is the famous Iditarod dog sled race. It started last Sunday in Willow, Alaska (there was a ceremonial start in Anchorage on Saturday, but that doesn't count as far as the race goes). Still, I admit that I love going downtown to see the ceremonial start. The dogs are so excited they can hardly sit still. The teams require a human handler for each dog until "showtime." That is a lot of handlers. Then it all gets repeated the next day in Willow, only this time it's for real!

And now, every day, the paper is full of news about the race, the dogs, the mushers, and the volunteers (pilots, vets, checkpoint people and more). It triples the amount of time I spend reading the paper in the morning. It's all so interesting. Every person and every dog seems to have an inspirational tale to tell. I can feel the excitement, even from my warm little house in Anchorage.

There are all kinds of ways you could get involved if you wanted to. The race is run on volunteer power. Handlers are always needed and some kennels will even let you race a team if you stick with them long enough (Plettner Kennels is one of them). One of the checkpoints along the way, a cabin in Skwentna, is for sale too. If you wanted to live in the wilderness, you could welcome masses of media and mushers for a few days each year... or not. I would do it if I could afford it... and if I could live in the wilderness for the rest of the year, which is probably not the case. But I imagine the stories that are told in the cabins along the way, the excitement of the mushers and the dogs, and witnessing the camaraderie among the opponents. The Iditarod is one of the few competitions where the contenders help each other out with tips and encouragement. I think they must recognize,
even while competing, that each musher on the field is a kindred spirit of sorts. This is not a lifestyle entered into lightly.

If you want to check out the standings, their website is www.iditarod.com. The site also provides musher profiles for each racer. When I last checked, Lance Mackey was in the lead and had already taken his mandatory 24-hour rest period which plays an important parts of really figuring out who is in "the lead." Lance won the race last year after winning the "Yukon Quest" anoth huge race. Before last year it was believed that no one could win both races in the same year. He won the Yukon Quest again this year... but he has a lot of keen competition right behind him. I can't say enough good things about this guy. He deserves to win again, just to show every one that he is all business! But I still have a few other favorites.

In Second place is Dee Dee Jonrowe. She is my hard luck gal. She has been "a brides maid" in the race several times, but never "the bride." She has made it through cancer and a terrible car accident. I was sad that she scratched last year after her sled bashed into a stump. I am delighted to see her back in the running this year (Go Dee Dee!) Oh darn... while I've been typing two other mushers left "Cripple" (a checkpoint) leaving Dee Dee in 4th place. I suspect she is taking her 24-hour layover and won't move until morning. The mushers that are now in 2nd and 3rd place are Jeff King and Rick Swenson, both talented smart mushers who have won the race multiple times.

In 7th place right now is Martin Buser, another favorite. I like watching him and his son racing with him. Rohn, 18 years old and an Iditarod rookie, seems to be pacing his father pretty well. Rohn was named after one of the Iditarod checkpoints, like his older brother Nikolai.

There's just no good place to end this blog. I am not a typical "sports fan." But something about this amazing feat grabs me. Perhaps because it is something that I would love to do, but realize is beyond my ability. I mean, before you can imagine running the race you have to imagine having a dog team... and that is a lot of poop to scoop.